A Florida mom says her 6-year-old's first grade teacher had no right to tell her son to stand -- not kneel -- during the Pledge of Allegiance.

Advertisement

The incident happened in a Pasco County school Monday. The child dropped to one knee during the Pledge of Allegiance and was then told to stand up.

The boy's teacher sent a text message about the incident, reading in part: "I knew where he had seen it but I did tell him that in the classroom we are learning what it means to be a good citizen."

Watch the video above for the teacher's entire text message

The boy's mother, who asked not to be identified, said she didn't tell her son to kneel, but she's still unhappy with how the incident played out.

"She told him right away, based on what he told me, to stand up and stop it. That's not her right," she said.

District representative Linda Cobbe said the school followed state law.

"The only way that a student can be exempted from reciting the Pledge of Allegiance is if they have a written request from their parent and even then, the law says that they still have to stand," she said.

Cobbe added that it would have been better for the teacher to pull the student aside and discuss the matter in private.